Big Tech’s Smart Devices May Need EU Rules, Vestager Says
- EU official says it’s not enough to find problems, levy fines
- Probes into Facebook and Google are ‘quite advanced’
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Big tech’s smart devices may need European Union rules if antitrust probes can’t tackle “systemic” problems on how they may gather data and lock in users, EU digital chief Margrethe Vestager warned.
Regulators have concerns about the so-called internet of things after wrapping up a sweeping antitrust inquiry into voice assistants like Amazon.com Inc.’s Alexa and Apple Inc.’s Siri, she said at a speech in Prague on Monday. An EU report highlighted potential issues with how devices work together, how they gather data and how companies’ practices may keep users within their own product range.